DC Universe chief James Gunn has confirmed that upcoming movie Clayface, which just received its debut trailer, is set before last year’s Superman.
While Superman kickstarted the rebooted DCU last summer, this summer’s Supergirl will continue it, and next year’s Man of Tomorrow will act as a Superman sequel, Clayface is set before them all — despite coming out this September.
In a series of posts on threads, Gunn made Clayface’s place on the DCU timeline clear. “Before,” he said, when asked if it was set before or after Superman. “It’s the first DCU film out of chronological order.” Presumably, this means that during the events of Clayface, Superman villain Lex Luthor is out doing his thing, and Superman has yet to find out the truth behind his place on Earth.
Gunn went on to offer a few more tidbits on what Clayface is trying to achieve, and what it might mean for the DCU. “It’s very connected,” he said of Clayface’s role in the larger DCU plan, “but as always the standalone story is what’s most important.”
Clayface is very different to any DCU project we have seen or we know to be in the works. It’s a body horror film based around a classic Batman villain, and, if you’ve seen the debut trailer, you’ll know it’s doubling down on the body horror.
The DCU will include more films of different genres as well as standard superhero fare, Gunn explained.
“From the start we’ve been clear the DCU would be interconnected but each project would be full expressions of their writers and directors (similar to how DC Comics work – ‘Saga of the Swamp Thing’, ‘Justice League International’, ‘Killing Joke’, & ‘All-Star Squadron’ are not one tone, and neither are Superman, Lanterns, Peacemaker, & Clayface),” he said. “The film or show will play in whatever genre suits the story best. Clayface is not a ‘hybrid superhero horror film’, it is a horror film.”
The big question is, will Batman appear in the Gotham-set Clayface? It seems unlikely, given Gunn has yet to indicate he’s remotely close to sorting out his plans for the troublesome The Brave and the Bold. Gunn must navigate next year’s release of The Batman 2 and potentially The Batman 3, which exist in a universe separate to the ongoing DCU, while setting out plans to introduce Batman into his universe.
The Batman 2, starring Robert Pattinson in the title role, is set to launch five-and-a-half years after The Batman, on October 1, 2027. Writer-director Matt Reeves has said he set out to make a trilogy of Batman films as part of his Batman Epic Crime Saga, and as of 2024 that plan was still on.
Since Gunn has ruled out Pattinson’s Batman crossing over into the DCU, we’re set for a new actor to play the Caped Crusader for The Brave and the Bold. Gunn has suggested fans won’t get an update on The Brave and the Bold until after The Batman 2 comes out, so we’re probably looking at 2028 at the earliest for news. “I’m dependent on when there’s an actionable script ready so there is no way of me guessing this,” he said. “Also, frankly, we’re well into Batman 2, and I wouldn’t want to cloud the Batsphere until after that.”
Gunn then committed to never releasing two Batman movies in the same year. “I think both Batman and WW [Wonder Woman] are incredibly important,” he said in response to another fan. “But I’m also not going to have two Batman movies come out in the same year.”
While promoting Superman last year, Gunn admitted “Batman’s my biggest issue in all of DC right now.” While fans wait for The Brave and the Bold to see Gunn’s Batman in all his glory, Episode 6 of DCU canon animated show Creature Commandos showed Batman standing on a rooftop looking down at crime boss Doctor Phosphorus. The image below revealed a mega-stacked Caped Crusader in his iconic costume, but there was little else that could be discerned about Gunn’s take on the superhero.
Based on comments Gunn issued to Rotten Tomatoes TV following the release of Episode 6, it’s easy to see why this brief look at Batman was so generic. Gunn said he had asked for “more silhouette” after the original Batman on show was more detailed than he was ready to commit to at the time.
What this look at Batman did provide fans with, Gunn explained, was a clear indication that Batman not only already exists within the DCU during the events of Creature Commandos and Superman (and, presumably, Clayface), but that he is well-known within the universe, and that’s why there’s no need to tell his well-documented origin story.
Perhaps we’ll get a similar sort of Batman silhouette in Clayface, but I think it’s more likely that we’ll get the odd knowing reference, if we get anything Batman related at all.
Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
